By now, me and my Clan are done with Destiny 2: Lightfall – Season of the Deep and at the moment it feels like the most filler-like season out of them all. Bungie does not change their way of releasing content, they have a plan and they follow it despite players’ wishes for something different at this point: for example, an updated Guardian Games event that has stayed the same for years.
Over the last 4 years, players are given a tiny bit of plot stretched over 4-5 weeks of timegated seasonal activities and a couple of tasks meant to hype the anticipation for the following season. And while the developers mentioned that the last 2 seasons of the current expansion will look different, this system still affected the latest available content either way.
The new season introduced a new Raid. It is a beautiful piece of content, but… I play in a clan, and even among us the opinions on the new Raid are very divided:
The first group considers the new Raid to be the best thing introduced to the game yet. It features a very low entry threshold which allows for new or inexperienced players to finish it without much trouble. I personally saw and helped a bunch of new players to close the Raid, explained the mechanics and strategies – and groups upon groups of undergeared Guardians managed to beat the Raid and rejoice.
On the other hand, another group that I also belong to considers it to be a weak addition to the game. There is absolutely nothing wrong with there being a low entry threshold content but it feels like Bungie outdid themselves this time, which leads to people cleaning the raid on higher levels of difficulty in duos and results in boredom. Players can use content that is harder than jumping on illuminated platforms of 2 different colors.
Previous raids – Vault of Glass, Leviathan, Scourge of the Past, Last Wish and others – featured at least 2 or 3 mechanics that required players to execute them accurately. Our clan wiped and died over and over again in many of them until we had those mechanics down. Meanwhile, this particular raid had people think of different ways to make the playthrough more fun and challenging. Smack the boss with swords until the day is won? Can do. Kill the last boss in a single phase? OK. Kill the boss solo? Why not, just have a bunch of Guardians stay and watch as you brawl with the boss for 3-4 phases solo and bring the win.
The last season raised a lot of questions. Guardians had to save people that were abducted into the pyramids (no one explained why the antagonists are doing that). The plot turned out to be ambiguous and its ending – chaotic. The ridiculous self-sacrifice of Amanda Holliday still raises questions and gives an overall feeling like it wasn’t a goodbye but rather “see you later”. The death of Emperor Calus was so sad that I even felt sorry for the old man.
There are still A LOT of enemies around, and it is one of the drawbacks of the entire expansion. Instead of making complex mechanics or introducing rarer but stronger opponents, Bungie simply powered up monsters and stuffed them into every nook and cranny to soak up your time like a bullet-sponge. Small but positive changes were done to one of the hubs, H.E.L.M., that gives us seasonal tasks and an option to create seasonal gear. Previously, Umbral Engram served as the source of this seasonal gear but now the devs have gotten rid of them and instead introduced seasonal engrams. They do not take up space in inventory while having the same functionality as the old ones. Previously, upgrading seasonal gear took place in the very hub but after the update it migrated to the section with seasonal challenges, which is incredibly convenient and saves time.
The new season brought us Titan, the planet for which we already paid once. And, rather, not even the planet itself but 2-3 arenas available through H.E.L.M., modified maps of the old Titan. The developers have also added a new mechanic, swimming in the methane sea, which consists of looking for air bubbles to upgrade your “Pressure Protection” while you slooooooowly swim through the seas of Titan, from one point to another, with no option to shoot or do anything else but look for bubble or jump.
In addition to the familiar planet, we also see the return of a familiar face: a Titan named Sloane whom we all considered dead after she stayed behind during the second Collapse. The season will tell us more about the nature of the main antagonist of the game, the Witness, and maybe we’ll finally get some answers to the questions that have been raised during this expansion.
The game also received a new mechanic: fishing. And it turned out to be a very pleasant activity that offers some pretty good rewards. Visiting old locations with the purposes of fishing is not at all bothersome and the process is well integrated into the overall world. To start fishing, you require bait which is granted from certain activities.
While fishing, your character accumulates a certain buff that gives you a chance of getting rarer, more exotic fish. However, in order to receive it you need to be fishing in the company of other people and if an activity kicks in nearby, the fishing spot will disappear too. Together with the buff. Which can lead to frustrating experiences like fishing with friends, almost reaching the full scope of the buff, only being interrupted by an Activity nearby. Try to finish it ASAP to return to fishing, only to see that the buff is already gone and you have to stack it anew, only to lose it to another Activity. Repeat a dozen times and lose any interest in fishing.
The new season also introduced a new dungeon for 3 people which would be quite a good addition if it weren’t for some details such as being artificially extended by a number of factors. For example, a very lengthy phase where you have to swim through the ocean, looking for air bubbles and covering a great distance. Another one is an overwhelming number of mobs. Thanks for not forgetting about the Shining Swarm, it feels like the dungeon was supposed to come out in the last expansion thanks to it. It took us over 2 hours to finish the dungeon the first time as we weren’t sure of the mechanics and layouts and were constantly under the attack of empowered swarms.
However, some innovations are quite pleasing such as a small rework of the Guardian rank system that became much more accessible compared to the last season. Of course, the season has a number of bugs but they are not many or critical for your playthrough, in line with the developers saying that they would treat the release of new content more carefully. Patches will now come with some minor maintenance which will hopefully keep the game stable without shutting down services or weapons like it happened last year. Almost forgot – weapons from the old raid Last Wish can now be crafted. Otherwise, the new season is not very different from old ones.
Check out the official site to find out more or to start playing.
Note: Destiny 2 Lightfall is a verified purchase by the author.
